Why KC Chiefs could go defensive tackle in the first round

Late First-Round Defensive Tackles for the Chiefs

Siaki Ika – Baylor

There is currently one defensive tackle prospect that would get me excited if the Chiefs took him at pick #31 and that is Baylor’s Siaki Ika. Ika is an absolute physical monster. He’s listed at 6-foot-4 and 358 pounds and he looks every bit of that. Traditionally, that kind of size limits a player to being strictly a two-down run stuffer/nose tackle in the NFL. If that is all the Chiefs think Ika will be in the pros then you don’t touch him with the #31 overall pick. However, Ika’s tape shows a freakish combination of power and agility for a man that size. So much so that you can’t help but think of Vita Vea when you watch him play.

I’ve watched all the tape on Ika that I can find at this point and I’m sold. The man has to be double-teamed to be controlled and at the college level that wasn’t even enough at times. While he doesn’t have a wide variety of pass rush moves, he doesn’t really need them. If he’s one on one with a guard he just bulldozes them right back into the quarterback. In the run game, he possesses the power to keep an offensive lineman off him with one arm while making a tackle on the ball carrier with the other. I also like how he kept his head up and eyes on the ball carrier even when being double-teamed. The idea of putting that kind of power that needs to be double-teamed next to Chris Jones is tempting to me.

Ika’s tape isn’t perfect. He was inconsistent at times with his pad level. He needs to get his arms around guys to finish them (some ball carriers slipped out of his hands) and he didn’t play a very high percentage of snaps, so his conditioning may be an issue if teams want him to help push the pocket on passing downs. The reason I would be excited if the Chiefs took him at #31 is because it means they believe he’s special enough to not just be a run-stopping nose tackle. If they see a Vita Vea-type player they can pair next to Chris Jones, then sign me up.

Mazi Smith – Michigan

Another defensive tackle who is likely to see a big increase in his first-round buzz after the NFL Combine is Michigan’s Mazi Smith.

Smith has the body of a nose tackle at 6-foot-3 and 337 pounds, but he’s an athletic freak. In fact, many are predicting that he will test off the charts this week in Indianapolis. It’s not impossible that Smith could see his stock increase much like it did for former Chief Dontari Poe after the Combine. Poe was similarly sized at 6-foot-3 and 346 pounds and put up 44 bench press reps and then ran the forty in under five seconds.

Smith does flash the freakish size/strength/agility on tape, but not quite as often as you would like for a first-round pick. So with Smith, it will be a question of how valuable his raw tools are to teams. Is this a player that they are confident will put it all together with good coaching and will become an even better pro than he was as a college player, or is he going to be one of those guys who never live up to the numbers he puts on paper?

Personally, I would feel a lot better about drafting Smith in the second round than I would in the first. However, it wouldn’t shock me if his combine performance makes that impossible. Much like I said with Ika, I’d be somewhat encouraged if the Chiefs took Smith at #31 because it means they believe that with good coaching Smith could be special. He definitely has the size/power to play next to Jones, but can coaches get enough consistency out of him and unlock his pass-rush production? Time will tell.

Finally, let’s talk about a couple of other guys that could also be a long shot for the first round or someone that the Chiefs could target in the second round if they are still there.